We have three humidifiers running right now and are looking into getting at least one more. As soon as winter hits here the air gets VERY dry and my boyfriend will literally wake up with a bloody nose because the skin got so dry in there. It would be unhealthy for our pets for the same reason, with their delicate little membranes.

Our humidifiers all auto-sense when to go on and off, so they only go on if it gets too dry.

You can get a humidity gauge for maybe $3 at your local WalMart. I would suggest getting one and seeing what your humidity level is to start with, so you know what you're dealing with!

I do have a desk fountain on my desk, but that is for stress, not for humidity. There are many times I am in here for 18 hours in a row just working - working - working and the fountain helps a bit with that.

Thanks for the info, Lisa. The normal humidity range in AZ is extremely low, and worse in the cold winter when the heat must be on. It does take some getting used to, and I really don't mind it.

But I think with Dan being so miserable here, i want to do what I can to make him comfortable.

In what rooms do you keep your humidifiers? How often do you have to fill them? Are they really loud?

I imagine your fountain does provide *some* moisture. I did mention getting one to Dan and he said they are too loud. So we'd have to find a really quiet one for him. He is very sensitive to machine sounds.

I hope your fountain helps you be less stressful! What kind of desk fountain is it? I am picturing something very Zen for you.

Well, we have managed to work out a solution that works for us - we keep a large pot of water (with a little bit of potpourri liquid) simmering. It seems to help the house keep a bit more humid. It seems to be enough for the hubbie.

We have experimented with a variety of humidifiers to find quiet ones. We have three downstairs - one in the kitchen, one in the living room and one in the office. Upstairs we have two - one in the bedroom and one in the hallway.

I am also sensitive to noise and we went through several fountains before we found one that I both liked visually and which has no pump noise. There are many "whisper" pumps out nowadays that are silent. Aquarium owners helped make that happen

An update on the using a pan of water on the stove: we've had to toss the pan we were using. Sometimes all the water evaporates and we end up with a hot burning pan. Even with the best of intentions to keep an eye on it, this happened, ever so often.

Yes stoves rank right up there with dryers in terms of huge energy users. So that is probably very inefficient, to use a stove to vaporize water. It would probably save a ton of money to use an actual vaporizer which is designed to do that. Or just leave pots of water lying around

Plants are great. They actively give water out into the atmosphere over time. You do have to water the plants of course

Also, don't use a dryer! Hang your wet clothes around the house. That is a great natural humidifier and will save you tons of money by not running the dryer.